GNOME user here. Just wanted to say I'm pretty impressed with the efforts you guys have made on this release. (Posting this from Konqueror.) KDE has always had a better focus on the total package while GNOME, at times, can be quite gangly. Hats off to a nice rounded effort. Can't say I'll be switching any time soon, but you guys have definitely upped the ante!
BTW, they say keep calling this a "desktop war", but can't we refer to this as a sporting event? So what if we both get a little bloody... this is FUN! And tell me we both don't realize that the competition is just making us stronger.
If this isn't FUD, I don't know what is. Isn't it humerous that Microsoft's main argument about Linux is it's business model? Well if their business model is so much better, than what's their worry!
Gandhi said it best:
First they ignore you.
Then they laugh at you.
Then they fight you.
Then you win.
Two things cause carpel tunnel syndrome: pressure on the wrists and any type of wrist-turning motion done repeatedly.
This keyboard would be successful in reducing wrist strain only because it prevents people from resting on them or using those stupid wrist rests that only increase pressure on the wrapping wrist ligaments. Of course, if you just support your lower arms (and most importantly, your elbows) off your work surface, much the same way a pianist does, it might be a little cheaper even though a little extra work until you get used to it.
The huge drawback I see with this concept is that finger action is no longer aided by gravity. You essentially have to re-learn the pressure needed for key action and don't have any opposing force to steady your arms. Instead, your arms swing like pendulums, your fingers bouncing off the keyboard surface like a repeller. This might work better if the surfaces were at a 45 degree angle or less but 90 degrees? I hope not much federal money went into this project...
B) Linux's stability won't play much of a part in this. Win2K is very stable
Speaking as a daily user of Win2K I can tell you it is NOT stable. Windows Explorer goes down on me all the time as well as MSOffice 2000 and third party apps, too.
Granted, the Linux desktops/apps are hardly stable either, but let's not overstate the competition in making out point.
I would whole-heartedly agree unless we decide that maybe the idea behind Nautilus is to reduce the totality of the GUI to navigation. Then features like zooming in and out to different levels of file/information detail, "preview" mouse-overs for every file type, and the wholistic management approach of web favorites, stocks, local files, communication (AIM, email, chat) become more than just things you can do with your file manager, and start becoming parts of a single metaphor to describe your GUI: Navigation.
Granted, it's arguable whether this is appropriate or destined for success, but I'd like to see it fleshed out a little farther before I discount it. I myself actually prefer tree-ed information structures, not the bombastic "hot-links/favorites" approach most web pages now seem to have. Navigation through the whole computing experience, from some root position, may just work for me.
Exactly! RedHat is basically a bunch of hackers that are getting paid to implement and write yet-to-exist implementations. It's not about selling anything other than service. The old paradigm of selling software *products* is dead. Now (as always) service is all that's left after the industry gets crowded and the margins decrease to nothing.
The only weakness RedHat has is having to wait until business gets enough brains to realize that the 25% it spends on software product is always followed by another 75% of support. (Which achieves only about 50% effectiveness on the initial 25%.) RedHat *starts* with, "Where do you want to go today?" and finishes with something like, "Now that we got you here, where do you want to go tomorrow?" and so on.
This means cash flow for sure even though the margins won't ever touch Microsoft's. But someday, this model eventually takes over, and then nobody's will.
I don't really understand why we need another device for one-handed typing. Does anybody know about a standard (and accompanying software) that accomplishes a full 100 character set over a standard 10-key number keypad with chording? I think this is a GREAT idea. Then you could still use your existing hardware. But, I'd probably want to use my right hand anyway, because...
The REAL advantage of a mapping like this would be the ability to map an identically sized pad, turned 90 degrees, to the screen of my Palm. Nine keys would be on the screen in a 3 x 3 grid, and the Palm's graffiti writing area could be the tenth. The lower physical buttons all could be accessed by the thumb for shift keys and the like. And a narrow three-line row for seeing what you're typing could go down the left side, the new "top" of the screen when in this typing mode.
Don't get me wrong, I love my Palm and can crank on the graffiti, but a single/chorded motion is much faster than jotted input in situations where you are taking laborious notes, like in class or at meetings. After you got used to it, you could just about keep your head up since there would only be nine or so virtual keys to worry with. The thumb resting on the real buttons would keep your other fingers in place after a little practice.
I would personally pay $100US to anyone that wrote such a thing and the corresponding desktop software. (I'm no hacker.) Anybody interested or interested in adding to the pot? I'd be willing to throw in web site design and maintenance if there are any serious takers, say at 9key.sourceforge.net or www.9key.org (other suggestions?). It would have to be GPL, with a max $5 for distribution of binaries through www.PalmGear.com. Anyone?
Good question. Honestly, I don't know if you could even say that humans always use a "better value system". Criminals and idiots fail to in my opinion. So I'm not even sure that a single "mechanism" is possible, but I can't think that I will never want a computer to make decisions apart from human oversight.
What I was really implying was the ability of the computer to reason in a completely new situation. Take your pedestrian-avoiding computer guidance system. What about the case (such as actually exists in a city I once lived) where a double amputee, unable to even sit up, rides around downtown prone on a custom hospital bed? It has handicap chair front wheels so that in his usual face-down position he is able to reach the wheels and move himself around. When rolling, neither his head nor arms move. Only his fingers close to control his speed while coasting. As a human, I immediately understood what this was, although it was the strangest thing I had ever seen. It helped that I could understand the situation by his Vietnam War era military coat and the begging signs that were taped on, but he hardly looked human. Would a car guidance system perceive this as a possible obstruction that could willfully (although errantly) roll out in front of traffic? It looked as much like a component of the stationary hot dog vendor's stand nearby. But as a human, I could bring realms of reasoning to the situation beyond what I had stored in memory as raw images and make a split decision.
I guess I am arguing that even a mouse has more of this intuitive reasoning than we could ever program a computer to learn.
Actually the perception and reasoning (perhaps "valuing" would be a better term) to which I was originally refering is that which makes a WW2 pilot say, "That looks like women and children down there, even though they're standing on my target. While my mission is to destroy that building, the enemy has used a defence superior to my initial program. But rather than to waste this flight, I'll bomb that train over there that we didn't know about."
Try teaching a computer to do deal with the unexpected based on a moral valuation system. It would have to "grow up" just like a human.
Perhaps Microsoft very much wishes their office software to run smoothly on Linux, if not through Wine at first. Isn't cross-platform their goal? (Look at their Apple software.) This is, after all, their true cash cow.
BTW, Word is not half as good as WordPerfect ever was, but Excel is truely the only decent app they've written.
Wall Street folks also love the subscription model because it's a way for RedHat to show predictable income stream from the "service" that they state to be their business model. 7.0 is definitely a business decision--all of us in the know can see it's not a technical one.
Let's stop criticizing them for the wrong reasons, and start praising them for continuing to prove that the open source method of software development can work on both fronts.
...not pleasure. [Can I use Linux as a verb?] I quote:
LM: Did you actually take a look at the technology?
Dell: Yeah. I have a little lab next to my office here, and I got a desktop PC and installed Red Hat Linux on it. I played around with it a little bit.
...and...
LM: OK, how much time do you personally spend thinking about or dealing with Linux these days?
Dell: I don't really have a number that comes to mind for you.
I bet he didn't even partition the hard drive himself. Granted Dell is a hardware supplier, I don't need its CEO to be a Linux efficianado, but some expressions of capability at the top sure would convincing.
His comments sound like many others these days: "We're going to support Linux because everybody else is and we don't want to be left out. But trust us, we know what we're doing."
Hardly "a new Linux evangelist" in my book. Our community needs companies that develop business units whose sole function is to support us (Linux), not just have us tacked on to rest of the OS support department. I think we'll see that the most successful companies five years from now will be those that got in to Linux with both feet today, provided dedicated service, knowledgable expertice, and serious committment from individuals that are compassionate of the cause. If anybody can spot an imposter, its going to be us.
Linux hasn't been easy until now, and we sure aren't doing this on a lark. How about showing some interest before you ask for our money? Sorry Michael, I'm not convinced.
The m100 has only 2Mb of memory. Colored covers are $19.99 ea. after the initial black one that ships with it. The "handwriting recognition" that you speak about (in addition to the standard graffiti language input) is actually just a raster recording of screen contact so that you can write, sketch, etc. and save it as a sticky note without having to be precise. Hardly intelligent handwriting recognition.
Slashdot Mirror
BTW, they say keep calling this a "desktop war", but can't we refer to this as a sporting event? So what if we both get a little bloody... this is FUN! And tell me we both don't realize that the competition is just making us stronger.
Nice play. But we're gonna get you with 2.0. :)
Anybody know if this thing is what Ginger will be all about?
You must have meant Microsoft-Trek, The Next Generation.
Gandhi said it best:
This keyboard would be successful in reducing wrist strain only because it prevents people from resting on them or using those stupid wrist rests that only increase pressure on the wrapping wrist ligaments. Of course, if you just support your lower arms (and most importantly, your elbows) off your work surface, much the same way a pianist does, it might be a little cheaper even though a little extra work until you get used to it.
The huge drawback I see with this concept is that finger action is no longer aided by gravity. You essentially have to re-learn the pressure needed for key action and don't have any opposing force to steady your arms. Instead, your arms swing like pendulums, your fingers bouncing off the keyboard surface like a repeller. This might work better if the surfaces were at a 45 degree angle or less but 90 degrees? I hope not much federal money went into this project...
Speaking as a daily user of Win2K I can tell you it is NOT stable. Windows Explorer goes down on me all the time as well as MSOffice 2000 and third party apps, too.
Granted, the Linux desktops/apps are hardly stable either, but let's not overstate the competition in making out point.
Granted, it's arguable whether this is appropriate or destined for success, but I'd like to see it fleshed out a little farther before I discount it. I myself actually prefer tree-ed information structures, not the bombastic "hot-links/favorites" approach most web pages now seem to have. Navigation through the whole computing experience, from some root position, may just work for me.
The only weakness RedHat has is having to wait until business gets enough brains to realize that the 25% it spends on software product is always followed by another 75% of support. (Which achieves only about 50% effectiveness on the initial 25%.) RedHat *starts* with, "Where do you want to go today?" and finishes with something like, "Now that we got you here, where do you want to go tomorrow?" and so on.
This means cash flow for sure even though the margins won't ever touch Microsoft's. But someday, this model eventually takes over, and then nobody's will.
The REAL advantage of a mapping like this would be the ability to map an identically sized pad, turned 90 degrees, to the screen of my Palm. Nine keys would be on the screen in a 3 x 3 grid, and the Palm's graffiti writing area could be the tenth. The lower physical buttons all could be accessed by the thumb for shift keys and the like. And a narrow three-line row for seeing what you're typing could go down the left side, the new "top" of the screen when in this typing mode.
Don't get me wrong, I love my Palm and can crank on the graffiti, but a single/chorded motion is much faster than jotted input in situations where you are taking laborious notes, like in class or at meetings. After you got used to it, you could just about keep your head up since there would only be nine or so virtual keys to worry with. The thumb resting on the real buttons would keep your other fingers in place after a little practice.
I would personally pay $100US to anyone that wrote such a thing and the corresponding desktop software. (I'm no hacker.) Anybody interested or interested in adding to the pot? I'd be willing to throw in web site design and maintenance if there are any serious takers, say at 9key.sourceforge.net or www.9key.org (other suggestions?). It would have to be GPL, with a max $5 for distribution of binaries through www.PalmGear.com. Anyone?
If an "H"...
What I was really implying was the ability of the computer to reason in a completely new situation. Take your pedestrian-avoiding computer guidance system. What about the case (such as actually exists in a city I once lived) where a double amputee, unable to even sit up, rides around downtown prone on a custom hospital bed? It has handicap chair front wheels so that in his usual face-down position he is able to reach the wheels and move himself around. When rolling, neither his head nor arms move. Only his fingers close to control his speed while coasting. As a human, I immediately understood what this was, although it was the strangest thing I had ever seen. It helped that I could understand the situation by his Vietnam War era military coat and the begging signs that were taped on, but he hardly looked human. Would a car guidance system perceive this as a possible obstruction that could willfully (although errantly) roll out in front of traffic? It looked as much like a component of the stationary hot dog vendor's stand nearby. But as a human, I could bring realms of reasoning to the situation beyond what I had stored in memory as raw images and make a split decision.
I guess I am arguing that even a mouse has more of this intuitive reasoning than we could ever program a computer to learn.
Well, yes. But read my response to "Perception and reasoning are already understood" above, too.
Try teaching a computer to do deal with the unexpected based on a moral valuation system. It would have to "grow up" just like a human.
My point exactly.
Perhaps Microsoft very much wishes their office software to run smoothly on Linux, if not through Wine at first. Isn't cross-platform their goal? (Look at their Apple software.) This is, after all, their true cash cow.
BTW, Word is not half as good as WordPerfect ever was, but Excel is truely the only decent app they've written.
Let's stop criticizing them for the wrong reasons, and start praising them for continuing to prove that the open source method of software development can work on both fronts.
LM: Did you actually take a look at the technology?
Dell: Yeah. I have a little lab next to my office here, and I got a desktop PC and installed Red Hat Linux on it. I played around with it a little bit.
...and...
LM: OK, how much time do you personally spend thinking about or dealing with Linux these days?
Dell: I don't really have a number that comes to mind for you.
I bet he didn't even partition the hard drive himself. Granted Dell is a hardware supplier, I don't need its CEO to be a Linux efficianado, but some expressions of capability at the top sure would convincing.
His comments sound like many others these days: "We're going to support Linux because everybody else is and we don't want to be left out. But trust us, we know what we're doing."
Hardly "a new Linux evangelist" in my book. Our community needs companies that develop business units whose sole function is to support us (Linux), not just have us tacked on to rest of the OS support department. I think we'll see that the most successful companies five years from now will be those that got in to Linux with both feet today, provided dedicated service, knowledgable expertice, and serious committment from individuals that are compassionate of the cause. If anybody can spot an imposter, its going to be us.
Linux hasn't been easy until now, and we sure aren't doing this on a lark. How about showing some interest before you ask for our money? Sorry Michael, I'm not convinced.
The m100 has only 2Mb of memory. Colored covers are $19.99 ea. after the initial black one that ships with it. The "handwriting recognition" that you speak about (in addition to the standard graffiti language input) is actually just a raster recording of screen contact so that you can write, sketch, etc. and save it as a sticky note without having to be precise. Hardly intelligent handwriting recognition.